The numbers and types of electronic devices available to consumers has grown tremendously the past few years. Tablet computers, netbooks, laptops, desktops, and all-in-one computers, media players, handheld media players, cell phones, smart phones, and other devices have proliferated. These devices have proliferated not only in the types that are available, but also as in the functionality they include.
Moreover, options for some particular devices have also proliferated. For example, for a particular device, the size of an internal memory may be an option. Other functionalities, such as video or graphics cards, network connections, and others, may also be made available as options or as possible upgrades. This allows a manufacturer to offer products at several price points, and allows customers to buy only the amount of functionality that is required to suit their needs and to possibly upgrade at a later time.
With these devices, various options may be added by including an optional card or board inside a housing of the electronic device. Also, certain cards or boards may be manufactured separately, for example, by a different manufacturer. In these and other situations, it may be desirable to include the card in the electronic device as a daughter card or board. These optional or daughter cards or boards may be attached to a main or motherboard. Specifically, these optional or daughter cards or boards may be attached to a board inside the electronic device housing using a connector. These cards may be memory cards, networking, or other types of cards.
Recently, the speed of these cards has been increasing greatly, as the amount of data that these electronic devices process has skyrocketed. The speed of memory cards, networking cards, and other types of cards and devices has greatly increased.
Unfortunately, connectors are often a limiting factor in a device's speed. Unmatched terminations, reflections, and cross coupling at connectors may limit the operating frequency of device or card inserted in a connector.
Thus, what is needed are connectors that may provide improved signal paths that may allow a higher operating frequency for inserted devices or cards.